Tuesday, May 12 Recap
Note – We believe this is the most up-to-date information available at this time, but it is subject to change as circumstances warrant. Also, all finalized resources can be found on the COVID-19 Resource Center page of Hall Render’s website.
CMS Updates Medicare Blanket Waivers
- CMS provided new Medicare blanket waivers expanding hospitals’ ability to offer swing-bed services for patients who do not require acute care but do meet the skilled nursing facility level-of-care criteria and waiving certain eligibility requirements for hospitals.
Congressional Outlook
- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi released the House Democrats’ long-awaited proposal for the next stimulus bill. A 90-page summary is available here. The measure is currently slated for a vote in the House this Friday. While it is expected to pass the lower chamber, the bill stands little chance of passing the Republican-controlled Senate or being signed by President Trump in its current form. The legislation is widely viewed as an opening offer in negotiations between Republicans and Democrats.
- Some of the health care-related highlights include:
- $7.6 billion to support expanded health care services for underserved populations through HRSA.
- $100 billion more in grants for hospital and health care providers through the Provider Relief Fund.
- Increasing FMAP payments by 14 percentage points starting July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021.
- Prohibiting finalization of the Medicaid Fiscal Accountability Rule (“MFAR”) until the public health emergency is over.
- Temporarily increasing Medicaid DSH allotments by 2.5 percent.
- Providing an outlier payment for inpatient claims for any amount over the traditional Medicare payment to cover excess costs hospitals incur for COVID-19 patients until January 31, 2021.
- Lowering the interest rate for loans to Medicare providers made under the Accelerated and Advance Payment Program to 1 percent, reducing the per-claim recoupment percentage to 25 percent and extending the period before repayment begins.
- Providing incentives for nursing facilities to create COVID-19-specific facilities.
From the FDA
- The FDA posted updated information for blood establishments during the COVID-19 public emergency.
- The FDA issued new guidance documents designed to help accelerate the development of prevention and treatment options for COVID-19.
For more information, please contact:
- John Williams III at (202) 370-9585 or jwilliams@wp.hallrender.com;
- Andrew Coats at (202) 370-9587 or acoats@wp.hallrender.com;
- Abby Kaericher at (202) 780-2989 or akaericher@wp.hallrender.com; or
- Your regular Hall Render attorney.
Hall Render’s attorneys and professionals continue to maintain the most up-to-date information and resources at our COVID-19 Resource page, through our 24/7 COVID‑19 Hotline at (317) 429-3900 or by contacting your regular Hall Render attorney.
Hall Render blog posts and articles are intended for informational purposes only. For ethical reasons, Hall Render attorneys cannot—outside of an attorney-client relationship—answer specific questions that would be legal advice.
